Global Leaderboard 50 in view

Most Famous British Explorers

Exploration 103
United Kingdom 9,803
245 JC James Cook James Cook British Explorer 1728–1779
694 FD Francis Drake Francis Drake British Explorer 1540–1596
1,029 ES Ernest Shackleton Ernest Shackleton British Explorer 1874–1922
1,269 RF Robert Falcon Scott Robert Falcon Scott British Explorer 1868–1912
1,391 DL David Livingstone David Livingstone British Explorer 1813–1873
2,211 HM Henry Morton Stanley Henry Morton Stanley British Explorer 1841–1904
3,808 JS John Smith (explorer) John Smith (explorer) British Explorer 1580–1631
4,339 JF John Franklin John Franklin British Explorer 1786–1847
4,575 GM George Mallory George Mallory British Mountaineer 1886–1924
4,923 HH Henry Hudson Henry Hudson British Explorer 1570–1611
6,341 GV George Vancouver British Explorer 1757–1798
7,040 WA William Adams (sailor) William Adams (sailor) British Explorer 1564–1620
7,088 MP Mungo Park (explorer) British Explorer 1771–1806
7,643 WD William Dampier William Dampier British Explorer 1651–1715
9,024 MF Matthew Flinders Matthew Flinders British Explorer 1774–1814
9,166 RT Richard Trevithick Richard Trevithick British Explorer 1771–1833
9,462 MF Martin Frobisher Martin Frobisher British Explorer 1535–1594
10,005 GE George Everest George Everest British Explorer 1790–1866
11,295 AM Alexander Mackenzie (explorer) Alexander Mackenzie (explorer) British Explorer 1764–1820
13,408 JH John Hanning Speke John Hanning Speke British Explorer 1827–1864
19,587 TC Thomas Cavendish Thomas Cavendish British Explorer 1560–1592
19,642 JR John Rolfe John Rolfe British Explorer 1585–1622
20,328 FY Francis Younghusband Francis Younghusband British Explorer 1863–1942
23,286 EM Ellen MacArthur Ellen MacArthur British Explorer b. 1976
23,358 SJ St John Philby St John Philby British Explorer 1885–1960
23,446 JM John McDouall Stuart John McDouall Stuart British Explorer 1815–1866
23,756 CS Charles Sturt Charles Sturt British Explorer 1795–1869
24,273 JB James Bruce James Bruce British Explorer 1730–1794
26,190 JR John Rae (explorer) John Rae (explorer) British Explorer 1813–1893
29,214 TM Thomas Mitchell (explorer) British Explorer 1792–1855
31,076 GB George Bass George Bass British Explorer 1771–1803
32,216 VF Vivian Fuchs British Explorer 1908–1999
34,857 LH Lady Hester Stanhope Lady Hester Stanhope British Explorer 1776–1839
39,833 SW Samuel Wallis Samuel Wallis British Explorer 1728–1795
48,685 FW Frank Wild Frank Wild British Explorer 1873–1939
49,808 TS Tim Severin Tim Severin British Explorer b. 1940
50,586 EE Edgar Evans Edgar Evans British Explorer 1876–1912
56,768 BG Bartholomew Gosnold British Explorer 1572–1607
60,531 JT Joseph Thomson (explorer) Joseph Thomson (explorer) British Explorer 1858–1895
61,563 AM Aeneas Mackintosh Aeneas Mackintosh British Explorer 1879–1916
64,992 WJ William John Wills William John Wills British Explorer 1834–1861
68,463 ES Eric Shipton British Explorer 1907–1977
75,551 FB Florence Baker Florence Baker British Explorer 1841–1916
85,586 CW Charles Waterton Charles Waterton British Explorer 1782–1865
86,391 AH Alison Hargreaves Alison Hargreaves British Mountaineer 1962–1995
100,075 GB Gregory Blaxland Gregory Blaxland British Explorer 1778–1853
101,658 FG Frederick George Jackson Frederick George Jackson British Explorer 1860–1938
116,165 WJ William John Bankes William John Bankes British Explorer 1786–1855
123,429 WL William Lashly William Lashly British Explorer 1867–1940
139,601 AA Albert Armitage Albert Armitage British Explorer 1864–1943
See all 152,953 rankings →

Ranked by cross-verified academic notability — how it works

By the numbers

Inside the United Kingdom Explorers

103 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Decades

One face per decade — the most globally famous the united kingdom explorers born in each.

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among the United Kingdom Explorers peaked in the 1770s with 9 people.

What the United Kingdom Explorers Are Known For

Click any row to drill into that filter.

Explorer are the United Kingdom Explorers's biggest group — 87% of all notables (90).

The United Kingdom Explorers over-index on explorer265.2× the global rate.

  1. Explorer90
  2. Mountaineer6
  3. Aviator6
  4. Test Pilot1
  1. Explorer90265.2×
  2. Aviator6143.7×
  3. Mountaineer6102.4×

City Hot Spots

Cities that over-produce the United Kingdom Explorers compared to the world average — multiplier shows how much more.